4 Tips for Parents of Drug and Alcohol Addicts

Watching your child struggling with addiction is enormously difficult, particularly when you feel helpless as a parent. Nearly all parents make mistakes, which is entirely natural as we’re usually not prepared to deal with addiction issues in our children. If you're the parent of someone struggling with alcohol or drug addiction, it’s important to remember that rehabilitation centers like CASA Recovery are here to help. Here we give you some tips on how parents of addicts can help their children recover from drug and alcohol addiction.

1. Only Offer Support You’re Capable of Sustaining

If you are helping your child financially or supporting them by providing a roof over their heads, you must make sure that you are not unknowingly supporting their addiction. Only give money you can afford to give and always make sure you get a detailed account of what the money is to be used for. If you know your child is struggling with addiction, or is at risk, offering to pay for professional drug or alcohol rehabilitation is probably the wisest use of your money.

2. Don’t Take Full Responsibility for 'Rescuing’ Your Child

It’s essential that you don’t assume you know your child better than they do and using that information to devise your own rescue plan. The fact that your child is addicted to a substance or alcohol means that their personality is significantly altered. If you are determined to be the one to save them, you will almost certainly encounter conflict. It’s always advisable to seek professional counseling through your child’s addiction.

3. Don't Forget to Take Care of the Rest of Your Family and Yourself

It’s easy to make your addicted child the central focus of the family as you desperately seek ways to to help them recover from addiction. However, you can find yourself being sucked into the very same dark places your child dwells in if you don’t protect yourself and the loved ones closest to the situation.

4. Remember You Can Love Your Child Without Supporting Their Behavior

You have to emotionally detach on some levels from your child when you want to take on their addiction issues. You can’t hold yourself responsible for their decisions because that will lead you down a path of enabling their addiction. Make sure you hold them fully accountable for their choices while reinforcing your unconditional love for them. Addicts need their parents' support, but that doesn't mean condoning their behavior. People refer to this as ‘tough love.' It’s hard to deliver but the rewards are usually worth it, especially when it means helping your child heal from alcoholism or drug addiction.

Let CASA Recovery Help You Understand Your Child’s Addiction

We have professional addiction therapists available to help you find addiction treatment for your child at our Southern California addiction recovery center. We have experience in counseling parents of drug and alcohol addicts. We offer a wide range of tried and tested addiction treatments in San Juan Capistrano, CA, including holistic treatment and detox. Our rehabilitation center near Dana Point, CA provides the perfect environment to meet the individual requirements of the patients in our care. If you are the parent of a child with drug or alcohol addiction, contact us today for a consultation in full confidence.